UKIP LEADERSHIP hopeful Suzanne Evans has said ending a “wilful blindness” to radical Islam is at the forefront of her priorities.

The former Tory councillor outlined her vision for Ukip while speaking on talkRADIO and said her party’s focus, following the Brexit vote, should turn to “integration”.

She said: “I think the next step is… tackling radical Islam,” she said. “As a woman, I absolutely find it abhorrent the way in which we have had cultural practices that have been introduced into Britain that did not exist when I was a child – things like female genital mutilation, we’ve got 4,000 cases in London alone.”

The journalist, who also served as a Ukip councillor between 2013 and 2014, blasted authorities for “turning a blind eye” to sexual abuse for fear of being branded “racist”.

I think Ukip has talked very much about immigration, we now need to start talking as much about integration as we have about immigration

Ukip leadership candidate Suzanne Evans

She said: “So called honour killings are absolutely rife, we’ve had in other parts of the country, we’ve had a blind eye turned to the appalling sexual abuse of white girls by mainly Pakistani and Bangladeshi men because the authorities are too frightened to speak up and speak out and protect those girls for fear of being accused [of being] racist.”

Ms Evans said Ukip should turn its attention to integration in a bid to tackle radical Islam.

“There is a wilful blindness and a blinkered approach to this, we have to tackle it and I think Ukip has talked very much about immigration, we now need to start talking as much about integration as we have about immigration.”

Nigel Farage in pictures

Mon, November 28, 2016

Nigel Farage is a British politician who has been the leader of the UK Independence Party since October 2016.

Responding to why it should be a priority over rising house prices, the NHS and school places, the candidate said “safety and security” was paramount.

She said: “I think the first duty… is to provide the people with safety and security and I don’t think there’s any doubt that Islamist terrorism is the greatest threat to our security right now, so we have to tackle it.

“I think we need to start tackling it at a community level, that means introducing policies that fundamentally, at their root, make no exceptions and give no special privileges to any one faith.”

Ukip members also in the race to be crowned leader are Jonathan Rees-Evans, Peter Whittle and Paul Nuttall.